Sailings after August 14, 2022 have Modified Departure and Port Times

[CruisingWalter]

Via Cruise Hive today, as of August 14, 2022, Virgin will be changing the Miami Departure time for Scarlet Lady and Valiant Lady (when she arrives) to 6pm, instead of 7pm. All guests must be at Terminal no later than 5pm.

 

They've also shortened or changed the times for the ports of call in Key West, Costa Maya, Cozumel, Puerto Plata, San Juan, Fredriksted and Roatan. Bimini is also shortened to a 6pm departure instead of 7pm.

 

According to the article, Virgin has not given any reason for the spate of changes. Full Article: https://www.cruisehive.com/virgin-voyages-shortening-port-times-on-multiple-itineraries/78675

 

 

Edited August 10, 2022 by WheresWalter

[Fogcityca13]

Got our email yesterday. Not too big of a deal to us on our upcoming trip. Would be nice to have some extra wiggle room in Roatan for the tour we booked.
 

Sounds like some Med sailings were cut by 2hrs. The part of the email that some are upset by is “Based on feedback from you, our Sailors, we’re excited to share that you’ll now have a bit more time to spend onboard our beautiful lady ships.” Maybe could have delivered that news a bit better. Glad Community Support is not my profession. 

[Lustate]

I am starting to wonder if we will also get an email regarding the "Med to Miami". That does not appear to have been mentioned or an email sent, but given many of the ports are the same, I hope nothing else changes.

 

An hour or two is not the end of the world, but VV had already cut one port on this 14 night voyage so it now only has three stops (all in the first seven days). 

[CruisingWalter]

13 hours ago, Fogcityca13 said:

Sounds like some Med sailings were cut by 2hrs. The part of the email that some are upset by is “Based on feedback from you, our Sailors, we’re excited to share that you’ll now have a bit more time to spend onboard our beautiful lady ships.” Maybe could have delivered that news a bit better. Glad Community Support is not my profession. 

 

 

"Based on feedback..." doesn't make any sense in the least. If you want more time back on the ships all you have to do is return to the ship earlier. Or just stay onboard at a port stop like we did in Puerto Plata where we had the pool all to ourselves for hours. In reality it looks like cost cutting to me because I believe the port fees are tied into how long a ship is tied up. I could be wrong, but I believe by shaving off a few hours here, a few hours there, they're saving some money by not being in port as long as originally planned.

 

I'm also guessing not many people are staying for the 'beach bonfire' in Bimini, opting to return to the ship for dinner instead. The food at Bimini was the only disappointment when it comes to F&B. I'm not sure that food is prepared by the Virgin culinary team, it's probably made by Resorts World and it's really not that good at all, especially compared to the quality of the food onboard.

 

Regardless, the Scarlet Lady experience was awesome for us, I still have to write a review, and I do look forward to sailing VV again in the future. 

[Chrish2]

2 hours ago, WheresWalter said:

The food at Bimini was the only disappointment when it comes to F&B. I'm not sure that food is prepared by the Virgin culinary team, it's probably made by Resorts World and it's really not that good at all, especially compared to the quality of the food onboard.

 

Staff are VV staff during days their ship calls. The food is all prepared on ship and then taken down by the crew. Some final plating may occur at at the beach club.

 

2 hours ago, WheresWalter said:

"Based on feedback..." doesn't make any sense in the least.

 

It could be based on feedback but not direct feedback. For example they might be abandoning more customers at port when they forget all aboard time. When conditions are not favourable the scheduled itinerary is a bit tight and they have no choice but to depart. I'm not going to say "their own fault" but I can see that these customers obviously provide extremely negative feedback that they may be trying to tackle.

 

Of course they know the re-embarkation time of every sailer for every port. It might be a luxury used by an average of 12 people. They may have asked those who got on board earlier why they didn't stay ashore longer etc.

[kwokpot]

6 hours ago, WheresWalter said:

The food at Bimini was the only disappointment when it comes to F&B.

I'll have to disagree with this statement. I thoroughly enjoyed what was offered, it was fresh, tasty, and well prepared. Having said that the offerings are very limited and have a very narrow appeal. If they are going to offer a limited menu I think there needs it be at least one or two choices that are a little more basic, such as a burger, hot dog, or grilled chicken. 

[drewdawg199]

2 hours ago, kwokpot said:

I'll have to disagree with this statement. I thoroughly enjoyed what was offered, it was fresh, tasty, and well prepared. Having said that the offerings are very limited and have a very narrow appeal. If they are going to offer a limited menu I think there needs it be at least one or two choices that are a little more basic, such as a burger, hot dog, or grilled chicken. 

I think the pulled pork is their version of a basic option.

[kwokpot]

55 minutes ago, drewdawg199 said:

I think the pulled pork is their version of a basic option.

Yes, my husband, who likes everything plain, had the pulled pork, which he enjoyed very much. All the restaurants were quite accommodating about leaving off sauces for him and he even enjoyed Pink Agave when usually he never touches Mexican (It was an accommodation for ME, and he was pleasantly surprised and glad he went)

Edit: Sufficient to say we didn't make it to Gungbae.

Edited August 11, 2022 by kwokpot

[CruisingWalter]

16 hours ago, kwokpot said:

I'll have to disagree with this statement. I thoroughly enjoyed what was offered, it was fresh, tasty, and well prepared. Having said that the offerings are very limited and have a very narrow appeal. If they are going to offer a limited menu I think there needs it be at least one or two choices that are a little more basic, such as a burger, hot dog, or grilled chicken. 

 

We found everything mushy and bland. The actual options they were offering were fine if they were prepared well. We're foodies and explore all types of different foods. Indian and curries are some of our favorites, but what they offered at Bimini during our visit was very meh. Especially compared to what was served on the ship. Next time we go to Bimini we'll skip the meal altogether and just head back to the ship for lunch. 

[rebeccac]

The fish dish at Bimini was so dry as to be practically inedible.  The other options were ok, jut not quite to the standard set on board.  

[Lustate]

3 hours ago, WheresWalter said:

 

We found everything mushy and bland. The actual options they were offering were fine if they were prepared well. We're foodies and explore all types of different foods. Indian and curries are some of our favorites, but what they offered at Bimini during our visit was very meh. Especially compared to what was served on the ship. Next time we go to Bimini we'll skip the meal altogether and just head back to the ship for lunch. 

 

I did not know they offered indian curries, I thought it was Caribbean curries and rice dishes. What was on offer?

[kwokpot]

2 hours ago, Lustate said:

 

I did not know they offered indian curries, I thought it was Caribbean curries and rice dishes. What was on offer?

It was Chicken Curry. It definitely wasn't an Indian Curry, actually more Malaysian tasting. Here's a photo. Also on the tray is grilled corn on the cob, rice and beans, fruit cup. I grew up on Chinese/Malaysian style chicken curry and this reminded me of what my grandma & mom used to make.

 

[Lustate]

On 8/12/2022 at 7:16 PM, kwokpot said:

It was Chicken Curry. It definitely wasn't an Indian Curry, actually more Malaysian tasting. Here's a photo. Also on the tray is grilled corn on the cob, rice and beans, fruit cup. I grew up on Chinese/Malaysian style chicken curry and this reminded me of what my grandma & mom used to make.

 

 

Ditch the fruit and i'm in 🙂